Vasily Melnikov

A resident of Kotelnikovsky District in the Volgograd Region, he was prosecuted for public calls to separatism following a post about the potential creation of a “Kotelnikovo Republic.” Melnikov pleaded guilty, and the case was heard under a special procedure. On 23 August 2017, he was sentenced to 320 hours of community service.

In July 2023, it emerged that Melnikov had been detained on charges of spreading false information about the Armed Forces. On 16 January 2024, he was sentenced to five years in a general-regime penal colony.